Mickelson elected to Dartmouth Select Board; school board incumbent ousted

Wednesday

Apr 2, 2014 at 12:01 AMApr 2, 2014 at 5:32 AM

Piling up 1,942 votes, Stanley Mickelson easily won a seat on the Select Board on Tuesday, outdistancing David Faria with 1,229 votes, according to unofficial results from the Town Clerk's Office.

AUDITI GUHA

DARTMOUTH — Piling up 1,942 votes, Stanley Mickelson easily won a seat on the Select Board on Tuesday, outdistancing David Faria with 1,229 votes, according to unofficial results from the Town Clerk's Office.

Speaking from his victory party at Fay's, Mickelson said he was "very, very excited" and "very, very humbled."

"I'm very, very satisfied with the election. I think the town spoke," he said.

A Planning Board member, Mickelson, 70, said he plans to resign from that position today.

"I look forward to Monday's meeting as a new member on the Select Board," said Mickelson, who is employed as a showroom manager.

His opponent, retired police officer David Faria, 73, congratulated Mickelson on his win and said it was "a good race."

"I lost the election but my name is out there and I feel I won because I participated," Faria said. "I want to thank all the people who did vote for me."

On the School Committee side, incumbent Jonathan Schwartz was ousted by political newcomers Carol Karafotis and Christopher Garth.

A former principal and longtime elementary educator, Karafotis, 70, swept up 2,263 votes, winning in all but one precinct, while Garth, 43, an educator, gathered 1,209.

"I'm feeling wonderful," Karafotis said from a party at Trio's on Tuesday night. "I knew I had a lot of good people supporting me. I am thrilled and overwhelmed."

Garth did not return several calls.

Schwartz, 63, a psychiatrist, got 1,077 votes and declined comment.

UMass Dartmouth professor Shannon Jenkins, 42, received 942 votes, according to the unofficial results, and did not return two calls.

Out of 23,201 registered voters, less than 15 percent turned out to vote Tuesday.

"It went a little bit better than last year," Town Clerk Lynn Medeiros said. "It was a good day."

A number of candidates were re-elected to other boards as well. The write-in votes will not be available until later this week, according to town officials.